


the one with the water park

by boysandghouls (blindedbythetomlinsun)



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Missed Opportunities, New Orleans, Pining, Sort Of, Youtuber AU, former sara/shane, idk guys, it's just really cute and sweet, just a feel-good fic, maybe some angst idk, test friends, uhhhh, uhhhhhhh, water parks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-29
Updated: 2017-11-10
Packaged: 2018-12-21 11:44:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,436
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11943477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blindedbythetomlinsun/pseuds/boysandghouls
Summary: Okay, so, there's no need to panic. Shane just needs to do everything he can to find the gorgeous, sarcastic man with dark hair, brown eyes, and humour that matches Shane's own. In this day and age, finding a stranger should be easy - but Shane never caught his name.or: Shane and Ryan meet in a water park. They never trade names, but Shane would do anything to find Ryan again.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hey, this is my first Shyan fic, but it's an idea that's been nagging at me for a while, so here it is! my bfu tumblr is boys-and-ghouls and my main tumblr is minorkey

Shane should have known that on a beautiful day like this, there was no way that he would be able to get away with spending it alone. In his house. Doing nothing. _Gosh,_ Shane can never catch a break.

“It’s so hot out, and you want to spend the day in _there_ _?”_ Jen chastises, dragging him to the car. Sara and Steven are already inside, eagerly awaiting his arrival.

“It’s called, ‘I have AC,’” Shane explains patiently, getting into the car regardless. Honestly, so what if he was going to watch some Netflix and eat some Chipotle? It was nobody’s business but his.

“Glad you could make it, sasquatch,” Steven greets from the passenger seat, turning to grin at him. “Got all your gear?”

Shane nods in resignation, patting his little backpack on his lap. A water park is definitely ideal for weather like this, but Shane isn’t exactly in the mood to swim.

“They dragged you along, too?” he asks, turning to Sara beside him. She grins back at him, but it’s gentle, and not as glaringly enthusiastic as Jen and Steven’s had been.

“C’mon, Shane, it’ll be fun!” she insists, nudging him a little. “You don’t _have_ to swim. You can, uh, tan?”

Shane has to laugh at that, because, really. Him? Tanning? He’s the whitest being on the planet. It’s moments like this where he misses _them -_ him and her. As he smiles, his eyes crinkling with laughter, he can’t help but think that it’s moments like these where he misses them - her and him - the most.

Living alone after his break up with Sara has been a little tough, but they ended on good terms and he’s glad that they’re still friends. They still talk and hang out, which is rather inevitable since they share the same friend group. Still, the apartment gets a little lonely, and his friends know that. He _knows_ that’s why they’ve dragged him along today, rather than letting him spend the day alone. It’s been a month since the break up, and they’ve definitely noticed him isolating himself.

Sara has it easier. She lives with her best friend Ashly now, and Shane thinks it must be nice to have someone around to fend off the loneliness. He doesn’t have that luxury. Sometimes he misses Sara, but reminds himself that it was for the best. Most of the time, it isn’t Sara he misses, but the feeling of _company._ Of having someone around to talk to, snuggle with, joke around with. Life without Sara Rubin is emptier.

_Maybe I should get a dog,_ he thinks, then gets distracted imagining the types of dogs he can get. Shane loves dogs.

“Earth to Shane.” Jen Ruggirello snaps her fingers from the driver’s seat as they sit at a stop light.

“Sorry, I was just thinkin’ about dogs,” he explains, and no one is surprised. Shane _loves_ dogs.

“I was asking if you’d be down to go on any waterslides?” Jen repeats, turning back to look at the road as the light turns green.

Shane ponders the idea for a bit. _Waterslides are fun and enjoyable,_ he muses, nodding a little. _And it would be good to actually do something._

“Oh, of course,” Shane exclaims after a moment. “I love waterslides.” That much isn’t a lie. He really does love waterslides. But not today. He just needs to get himself into the mood.

The rest of the drive goes relatively quickly. Everyone takes the opportunity to catch up, detailing what they’ve been up to for the past month or so, and as the others speak, Shane tries to find ways to make “ _eating Chipotle and popcorn, reading, or watching old movies”_ sound eventful.

“I’ve got a new VR set that I’ve been trying out,” Jen had said. “I’ve also been volunteering in my free time, as usual.” Jen does a lot of charity and volunteer-work, especially dealing with LGBTQ+ teens. They love her, and it’s not surprising that they do.

“Just traveling around a bit for work,” was Steven’s. Steven Lim is a food critic, which Shane still thinks is pretty sweet, so Steven gets to go to _a lot_ of restaurants.

“What about you, Sara?” Jen asks, and Shane holds his breath a little. They only dated for two years, but … the wound’s still just a bit fresh. He wonders if he wants to know her answer.

“Oh, you know, I’ve just been spending some time with Ashly and Quinta and Ella,” she replies, shrugging nonchalantly. “Getting back on my feet, adjusting, all that fun adult stuff.”

Shane lets out an inaudible sigh of relief. He knew that Sara wouldn’t find anyone new - at least, not so quickly. And it wouldn’t be a big deal if she did; Shane’s already mostly moved on himself. But still, she meant something to him, and that kind of thing doesn’t go away easily.

Well, his relief is short-lived anyways because now it’s his turn. Everyone looks towards him expectantly, and since he doesn’t have much to say, he opts for the truth.

“I’ve been… either eating Chipotle or popcorn, reading, or watching old movies,” he replies happily, and they all roll their eyes fondly in a way that screams _Classic Shane._ He’s just glad that they aren’t giving him shit for holing himself up in his apartment for a month.

That technically isn’t true. He goes out occasionally - hiking, jogging, even hanging out with Steven and Jen on days they’re both free. But their outings are less-frequent than before.

 

Eventually, they make it to the water park, and Shane is glad for it. The car ride had begun to feel a bit suffocating, which is something he never used to feel when in their company.

“Alright crew, let’s find a nice place to settle before running off all willy-nilly like barbarians,” Shane suggests after they’ve gotten into the park, and he notices the trio share relieved glances. _This_ is the Shane they know and love.

“Sounds like a plan, Captain,” Steven plays along, marching behind Shane. The girls roll their eyes and follow suit.

It really is a beautiful day. The sun likes to remind Shane of that by the way it beats down on him, causing him to sweat a bit. Good thing he brought sunscreen, or he would’ve been in for a ride. But, he must admit - it’s a perfect day for a swim.

They find a spot in the shade, setting down their big mat and their bags before deciding to hit the pool. Or, in Shane’s case, the waterslides.

Shane tugs off his shirt hastily, already wearing his swim trunks, and grins as Jen tries to beat him to one of the slides. Steven and Sara hang back, preferring to hang at the poolside.

“No crazy tricks,” Shane says, mock-sternly. “We aren’t trying to get kicked out of here.”

“Although, that would be pretty cool,” Jen replies, grinning widely, and Shane can’t help but agree. The things you’d have to do to get kicked out of a water park … No, Shane shouldn’t get any ideas.

After the first few slides, Shane can feel himself getting a little bored. The slides are fun - there’s like, _five_ of them! - but one can only slide for so long before they have to move on.

“There’s a mini-golf course in the park,” Jen suggests, toweling her hair, after he voices his boredom. Shane doesn’t know why she bothers - she’s just going to go cannonball into the deep end to try and splash Steven anyways.

“I’m always down for some mini-golf,” Shane muses, giving Jen a wave as he heads towards it. He doesn’t bother to put a shirt on since it really is hot out, and he has sunscreen as his shield from the big ol’ deadly laser anyways.

The mini-golf course is near the food shack, which is convenient because Shane’s probably (most definitely) going to be hungry in a bit. There’s no popcorn for him to survive off of now. He’s on his own.

Mini-golf of one sounds sad to most people, but Shane’s just glad to have a bit of alone time. Besides, if the others were here, they’d definitely be getting too wild, and Shane is having none of that for now. He grabs a blue putter and a ball, then heads towards the first hole.

The first few holes are holes-in-one, because Shane is a mini-golf wizard and the world can’t handle his skills. Tiger Woods ain’t got _nothin’_ on Shane Madej. That is, until the fifth hole rolls around, and his streak breaks.

“He waits, lining up his putter to the ball, determining the right angle to go about this difficult hole.”

That’s new. Shane glances up from his deep concentration and comes face-to-face with -

_Oh._

A wide grin, some charming brown eyes, and a devastatingly handsome man. He’s leaning against a post, watching Shane in amusement - he looks so suave and effortless, how is he real?

Shane shakes his head and goes back to mini-golfing.

“Aaaaand, he brings back the putter, he hits the ball, does he make it?” the man continues in his best commentator voice, and Shane can’t help but grin. Unfortunately, this new man is _way_ too gorgeous to handle, so Shane misses. “Ohhh, no,” the man continues in exaggerated disappointment, “the ball swerves making him over par.”

“Hey, listen up, mister,” Shane snaps in mock-anger, wagging a finger, “I’ll have you know that I’m a professional golfer - I was in the PGA Championship - and I don’t appreciate you slandering my skills like this.”

The man laughs so hard he wheezes, doubling over in a fit of glee. Shane can’t help but be entranced by him - his face lights up when he laughs, and he _glows_ . This man, whoever he is, is brighter than the _sun_.

“Listen, I’m just trying to do my job as a commentator,” the smiling man replies breathlessly, lifting his hands in surrender. “I - I got a wife and kids, I just wanna make a living!” He starts laughing again, and Shane briefly wonders if that _wife and kids_ part was real or part of the banter.

“Go slander somebody like Tiger Woods,” Shane suggests, finally getting the ball into the hole. “You see that?” He points to himself. “ _I’ve done it_ . Tiger Woods ain’t got _nothin’_ on me.”

As he walks to the next hole, he’s surprised and delighted to note that the man follows him.

“He’s lost his mind,” Mr. Commentator stage-whispers to the fake crowd. “He thinks he’s better than Woods himself!”

“I don’t think, I _know,_ ” Shane corrects, landing a hole-in-one. He gives the man a smug grin before moving onto the next hole.

“Well, looks like Woods had better watch out for the big guy,” the shorter man says, still in that announcer voice of his, and Shane is _smitten_. Who is this gorgeous, sarcastic boy who’s actually able to keep up with Shane’s own snarky humour?

“And the big guy has gotta watch his back for commentators who are dead-set on ruining his image and trashing his good name,” Shane retorts, missing the shot just barely.

The man wheezes once again, and Shane is more than a little endeared.

“Hey, man,” the stranger says normally, and Shane has to marvel at his voice, “in all actuality, I just finished my game of mini-golf a few minutes ago, and now I’m entertaining myself by watching poor schmucks like you fail.” He’s grinning, though, so Shane knows he’s just fucking with him.

“Well, I gotta board the honesty train too, I guess,” Shane sighs, running a hand through his hair. He watches in delight as the shorter man tracks the movement. “I’m not actually a professional golfer, and I was never in the PGA Championship.”

It’s just a throwaway comment, not even one of Shane’s greater jokes, but Mr. Intriguing Stranger reacts heartily at it, throwing his head back as he laughs. Shane could listen to him laugh for ages. For forever.

Before Shane can accidentally express this sentiment, however, the attractive shorter man straightens up and moves away from his spot on the post.

“Well, Mr. Liar, it was great watching you work your way up to being a pro golfer, but I’m afraid I gotta take my leave,” he says, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he glances up (and up and up) at Shane.

“I may not be a pro golfer, but I’m a whiz at mini-golf,” Shane retorts, taking a swing at the ball to prove his point. Thankfully, because the universe is on his side today, it gets right in.

The other man looks impressed. “Well, I’ll be sure to keep my eye out for you when the mini golf championship rolls around,” he says sincerely. He gives Shane one last once-over (during which Shane remembers with a start that he’s currently shirtless whereas the other man is very-much clothed) and offers a friendly salute. “See you around, golfer. Maybe next time we meet, you’ll have a trophy to show me.”

Shane salutes back and smiles. “You can count on it.”

The man laughs (and Shane’s heart soars at the sound) before turning and walking away. Even the way he _walks_ is cool and suave. _Wow._

Shane can’t concentrate on the rest of his mini golf game after that, but he’s certainly glad that he got to hear that man’s laugh one last time.

 

“What was he like?” Jen asks eagerly, leaning towards him. They’re all sat on their big picnic mat - Jen and Steven drying themselves, and Sara sprawled out reading a book. At least, that’s how Shane found them before he told them about his mystery man. Now they’re all looking at him in interest, eyes shining.

"He was ... Funny," Shane answers truthfully, a smile growing as he remembers the other man's delighted laughter. "He was attractive, and short ... Kept up with my humour, and just ... Really good," he finishes lamely, unable to find the words to describe the stranger. "Like ... Human sunshine."

_"'Human sunshine'?"_ Sara parrots, grinning. "Isn't that Steven?"

Steven beams across from Shane, showcasing his sunny personality. "I think I'm pretty sunshiney."

"Yeah, but this guy was even  _more_ sunshiney," Shane retorts. "His laugh alone was bright enough to power all of Los Angeles, probably."

"Sounds like you've got it pretty bad, Shane," Steven observes, nodding solemnly. "So, what's his name?"

Shane grimaces, looking at the ground. "I didn't get it," he mumbles.

" _What?"_ Jen exclaims, leaning towards Shane. "How could you have not asked for his name?"

"It didn't come up," Shane protests, raising his hands in surrender. " We were busy joking around, I wasn't about to ruin it by introducing myself."

"That wouldn't have ruined it, that would've  _improved_ it," Steven says wisely, and Sara nods from her spot beside him.

"Face it, Shane, you gotta go find him," she advises, and Shane's heart speeds up a little.

"Wait, d'you think he's still here?" he asks, glancing around the park. "I mean, I guess it's worth a shot, right?" He stands up, giving them all a wave before heading towards the pool and the slides, scouting around for his mystery man.

"I'm sure he'll find him," Sara says optimistically, and Jen smushes her face against the mat.

"I hope so. I'm tired of him being all mopey. That dude sounds good for him."

Shane comes back after a few minutes, shaking his head sadly. "No luck. I guess he left."

Steven pats his back reassuringly, encouraging him with a smile. "Keep your head up, Shane. We'll help you find him. I'm kind of an," Steven flips his imaginary long hair, "Instagram star."

Shane rolls his eyes. Steven has nearly 150 thousand followers on Instagram, which is rather impressive, seeing as all he posts about is food and the occasional squad picture. Oh, and selfies - Steven loves those. 

"Yeah, and like, I'll do my best to scout around on there, too," Sara offers. "Or Twitter."

Together, the four of them take to social media, attempting to track down Shane's mystery guy. Shane knows it's nearly impossible - they have no clue if the guy lives in the city or if he's visiting from somewhere else, and even if he  _does_ live in the city, so do millions of people. What are the odds that they'll ever find him through mutual friends or coworkers? Sure, Steven and Jen know a wide range of people through what they do - Steven being a food critic, and Jen helping out with many different organizations. But could it really be enough?

Shane remembers dark hair, brown eyes, a dazzling smile, and figures, well, it  _has_ to be enough.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao sorry this took so long. also this chapter is formatted differently, you'll see.

"Hey guys, Ryan here. Sorry I've been away for a bit - I've been enjoying summer and soaking up the sun."

Ryan pushes his hair up before settling his hat on top of it. It's a Lakers hat because  _god,_ he loves that team. He'd play for it if he could, but alas, life doesn't work that way. Besides, he's too busy doing, well,  _this._

"I'm off for another trip in an hour. Don't worry, you'll see soon. Anyways, you guys have been asking about a meet-up of sorts ...."

●●● 

"This is going to sound weird, but I'm gonna need to scroll through all your Facebook friends."

Mark and Sherry Madej blink once. Twice. Three times, before Sherry reaches out a hand to touch Shane's.

"Shane, are you okay?"

And no, not really, because Shane has resorted to turning to his  _parents_ for help, which. Well. Really shows how desperate he's become.

But his parents are saints - he loves them dearly, and they him, and he just knows they'll understand, so he explains.

"You know all of our Facebook friends are old people, right?" Mark quips, breaking the serious mood, and Shane laughs.

"They have sons my age, dad," he retorts right back, and his parents smile.

Sure, this will probably turn up unsuccessful, but he hasn't seen his parents since his break-up with Sara. He can tell they're glad he's back.

●●●

A flicker of light. Some distant, but heavy footsteps.

Ryan turns towards the sound, heart racing. This place is huge, anyone could be here. But as far as he knows, he's alone. _The things I do for my_  ... he thinks sardonically, then hears more noises.

He goes to turn on his flashlight.

It doesn't turn on.

"Fuck."

●●●

"This is going to sound weird," and boy, if this isn't the thousandth time he's ever uttered that sentence, "but if I describe someone to you, could you name all the people you know that fit that description?"

His coworkers glance up at him from their spot in the break room, and Shane tries not to let desperation show.

"Awesome hook-up last night?" Eugene jokes, raising a suggestive brow, and Shane cracks a wry smile.

"Not quite."

●●●

Ryan sits on the front steps of the huge building he's in front of, slightly out of breath. He peers down at the heavy object in his hands, squinting at it in mock-anger.

"The things I do for you guys," he mutters, shaking his head. "Well, I'm getting out of here. Hope you all had fun, but I'm signing off."

●●●

"Any luck, Shane?"

Shane looks up at the sound of Sara's voice. It's soft. Quiet. So very  _Sara._

"With the guy," she continues, taking his blank stare to mean confusion. In reality, Shane's just unwilling to admit it's hopeless. Everything's hopeless. How did he ever think he could possibly find the guy? He knows  _nothing_ about him. No name, no coworkers, no friends, no city - just a fading memory of his face and a vivid recollection of his smile. And his laugh. Shane could never forget that man's laugh.

Shane shakes his head and Sara rests a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"It's been a couple of days. I think it's useless," Shane says quietly. His eyes flicker towards Steven, who's bustling around the restaurant, asking questions and staring longingly at the food. Steven treats his friends to dinner at really nice places he's critiqued every so often, just because. Sometimes he takes Shane with him to work, but that's neither here nor there.

"It's not useless," Sara retorts, rolling her eyes. "Like you said, it's been a couple of days. There's no way you could've found him already. It'll take time."

Shane knows she's right, is the thing, but Shane's also a little bit impatient and he  _really_ wants to finally, properly meet this guy. He's someone that Shane was meant to meet - he's  _sure_ of it. The universe wouldn 't've put Shane's perfect match literally in front of him for no reason.

He just has to keep trying.

"Have you tried YouTube?" Steven pipes up, situating himself on the empty seat at their table. Jen couldn't make it - charity thing.

"YouTube?" Shane and Sara parrot incredulously. "Steven," Shane continues, "Instagram and Twitter? Sure, it's possible. But you can't find a stranger through YouTube."

 

As Shane leaves the restaurant, walking home, he mentally runs through all the possible ways to find Mystery Man again.

Instagram - some progress has been made there. He's requested to follow a few accounts who look like they can be the guy, but Instagram icons are so tiny and it's hard to see what people look like when they use full-body profile pictures. For the first time ever, Shane desperately wishes it were possible to zoom in on icons. On the bright side, Steven's kind of good at Instagram, so Shane has that going for him, too.

Twitter - Shane hasn't had a lot of luck in that department, but somehow Sara's excelling. Ashly has a wide range of followers, and Sara has been using that as means of searching. 

Snapchat - As much as Jen insists that looking at the people in the background of someone's party snaps will help, Shane is more than a little iffy on that.

Friends, Coworkers - Little success has been made here. Shane can describe Mystery Man to his friends or coworkers as much as he wants, but anyone can fit the description of, "swept-up black hair, tan skin, short, light voice. Was wearing a grey Lakers shirt and some cargo shirts." At first, Shane was certain that a Lakers shirt was a hint that the man lived in LA, but quickly realized that anyone from anywhere could be a fan of the Lakers, and his hopes were squashed. Eugene has promised to keep an eye out, but. Shane won't count on it.

They all probably wonder why he's trying so hard to find this guy, but he can't explain it. He just  _knows_ he needs to see him again.

Someone bumps into Shane, apologizing briefly before running off to join a crowd of people on the street. Shane narrows his eyes at the ruckus - all these people are talking loudly and scrambling to get at whatever is in the middle of their thunderdome. 

"Hey, what's this all about?" Shane asks someone on the edge of the crowd who's fighting to get to the center. "Last time I checked, Beyonce isn't in LA." It's supposed to be a joke, but the stranger doesn't laugh.

"That man over there is Ryan Bergara, famous ghost hunter extraordinaire!" the guy exclaims, eyes bright and shiny. Shane can't see this  _Ryan Bergara_ fellow through the teeming throng of ghost (bullshit) fans, but Shane doesn't want to.

Shane has never been one for the occult. Well, besides Bigfoot, and  _possibly_ the Loch Ness Monster. Cryptids hold a special place in his heart. But ghosts? Demons? Possessed dolls named Annabelle? Beetlejuice? _Casper the friendly ghost?_ Forget it. Shane is a man of  _science._ None of that paranormal crap. 

"You know ghost hunting is a load of shit, right?" he deadpans to the man, who scoffs and turns his back on him, continuing to fight through the crowd.

Shane has no clue who this Ryan Bergara man is, or why he's amassed such a following (for fuck's sake, they take up the entire goddamn _street -_ seriously, how cocky must this dude  _be?_ _)_ , but one thing's for certain - Shane never wants to meet the guy.

●●●

Ryan smiles, poses for a picture, signs an autograph. Smiles, poses for a picture, signs an autograph. All while filming for his vlog, which will be going up later today. His fans have been expecting a video, but he hadn't been able to give it to them - too busy taking some time off and enjoying his free time. But today's his meet-up, one that his fans have been asking for for ages, and it would make a great vlog.

"The crowd's crazy here today," he says to his camera, flipping it around to showcase the magnitude of people gathered on the street just to meet him. It's still overwhelming; Ryan doesn't see himself as a celebrity, but in the YouTube community, he has certainly gained a lot of traction. All because he decided to document his little ghost hunting adventures a year ago, and people had loved how scared-yet-funny he was during his endeavors. Ryan still has no clue how an utter dork like himself has become so famous, but. Well. He's out here doing what he loves, so he can't complain.

Ryan adjusts his hat - a white baseball cap that says "UNSOLVED", which is the name of his series. Yes, yes, _very clever and original_ , he knows, but. Ryan's always had an interest in conspiracy theories, strange phenomena, and the paranormal. Unsolved mysteries are his  _thing._

"Ryan, hi, tomorrow's Friday, what can we expect from your next  _Unsolved_ episode?" a fan asks, her voice shaking in either nervousness or excitement. Ryan posts vlogs on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. Fridays are for _Unsolved,_ and Wednesdays are his break days.

He smiles widely at her, glad to have an actual question about the series rather than just shouted declarations of admiration for him. Not that he doesn't appreciate those - the constant stream of, "Ryan, I love you!"'s and "Ryan, you're amazing!"'s are always sweet, but Ryan  _loves_ talking about his passion.

"Hey, yeah," he greets, "tomorrow's gonna be epic! It's about a really famous place, and it's  _huge_. I don't wanna spoil anything," he chuckles, "so you'll just have to wait and see. And keep an eye out for an announcement at the end!"

The girl nods fervently, shooting him one last grin before thanking him and turning away. Ryan loves his job.

●●●

Shane hates this.  _Hates this._

And okay, Shane is a man of science. He believes in the laws of physics, and cold, hard facts.

But.

But, there's something outside of science. This he knows. He won't go so far as to call it "soulmates," but.

But.

There's something about that man, that damn mystery man, that's drawing Shane to get closer. This is  _more_ than a crush, more than just wanting to find him for a date. This is something else entirely. This is -

"Fate," Steven says from beside him one evening, and Shane turns to look at him in confusion. They've been sitting in silence for the most part, so why Steven has decided to speak up suddenly is odd.

"Sorry?"

"Fate," Steven repeats easily, as if he hadn't just given Shane the very word that flips his viewpoint of the world upside down. "I've been thinking. About you and your stranger. Jen doesn't understand why you still want to find him, and I've never been able to explain to her why I understand where you're coming from." Steven leans back on his chair, kicking his feet up on Shane's stool by the dining table. "But now I know. It's fate," he says easily, grinning. "You two were fated to meet."

"Don't be ridiculous, Steven," he scoffs, shaking his head, but his protest sounds false even to him.

 _There are some things outside of science,_ he tells himself. Science doesn't explain this feeling in his gut, doesn't explain the way every fibre of his body screams at him to find that stranger, get to know that stranger,  _see him again._

Shane has always been a logical guy. A logical, rational guy. But he follows his intuition as much as he trusts facts. His instincts have always been reliable.

And none of his gut feelings have ever felt as strong as this.

●●●

Ryan has never felt so confident. His newest video is getting hundreds of thousands of views already, and he'd posted it about an hour ago. He never thought people would be so excited to watch him traipse through the Waverly Hills Sanatorium alone and almost die, but. He underestimates modern entertainment and the power of YouTube.

Ghost hunting has been Ryan's passion for as long as he can remember. But it wasn't until he decided to post one of his adventures that he thought he could make a wayward sort of career out of it. But YouTube  _pays_ him to fuck around haunted places and look for ghosts. How cool is  _that?_

It gets lonely, though. Zak Bagans of Ghost _Adventures_ has a crew, the Mystery Inc. from  _Scooby Doo_ were a crew, and countless others have people at their side. Ryan? Ryan has nobody, except some episodes require his friend TJ who works as his cameraman. But other than TJ, Ryan does this alone. Although it sets him apart from the other ghost hunting shows, it's extremely fucking terrifying and Ryan scares easily - something his audience knows for a fact.

Well. Ryan doesn't  _have_ to be alone, but he hasn't found anybody good enough to be his match. Dynamic duos aren't just  _born_ out of nowhere - they need to  _click._ And Ryan hasn't found a single person he's clicked with enough to want to go ghost hunting with them.

"Anyways, big announcement time," his little on-screen self exclaims, back in his car parked in front of the Sanatorium. _Yes, sure, okay_ , Ryan watches his videos a few times after posting them. Big whoop. He just likes to make sure he did a good job, alright? "The season finale for this series is going to be pretty big, so keep your eyes peeled," video-Ryan continues. "This is something I'm really excited for, so I'm just gonna go out and say it - I'm headin' for New Orleans!"

●●●

Netlfix is a disappointment. Okay, that's not true, but Shane has either caught up on or finished watching all the shows he wanted to, and now he's lost. He's finished all of his work projects, he hung out with Steven a few days ago, and now he's completed all of his shows. Shane's been very productive, but now this means he's officially exhausted all means of distracting him from Mystery Man.

YouTube is the next best thing. Well, besides books, but there isn't a single book in Shane's house that he hasn't read at  _least_ three times.

He heads on over to AlternateHistoryHub, which is one of his favourite channels. He's always been interested in history, and the idea of alternate versions of periods in time is fascinating. He watches a few -  _"What If The Black Plague WIped Out Europe?", "What If American Slavery Never Existed?", "What If The British Empire Never Existed?", "What If Germany Won World War II?"_ \- before falling down a rabbit hole of history and conspiracies. Videos like aliens, the Illuminati, and  _"Was Ben Franklin In A Sex Cult?"_ which - yeah, Shane's gone too far.

Far enough that a ghost hunting video pops up on his recommended videos, which. Okay. Sure, he's fallen into the weirder side of YouTube, full of aliens, lizard people in the government, and extremely alternate histories, but. Ghost hunting.  _Really._

 _"Exploring The Ghosts Of The Waverly Hills Sanatorium!"_ it's called. The thumbnail of the video shows a grainy, low quality night-vision picture of some guy screaming - the ghost hunter, Shane guesses - with a shadowy figure behind him. Shane almost clicks on it just for kicks, he's really about to, but. He looks at the channel and reads RyanBergara, and, like. No. That's too far. He can watch a fifteen-minute video on Ben Franklin's sexploitations, but this Ryan Bergara dude ghost hunting? Nah. Especially not with that shadow in the background looking fake as hell. This is definitely clickbait, and Shane isn't about that clickbait life. No matter how famous this Bergara guy is. He _won't_ watch it. Shane is a spiteful man.

He exits out of YouTube, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He almost watched Bergara traipse around a Sanatorium.  _What has he become._

And with that, Shane decides he needs a vacation.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whoop sorry it's been like two months haha

New Orleans is a city with a different vibe. Everything seems different. Maybe it's the magic and voodoo, or just the livelihood and spirit of the people that reside here.

 

Whatever it is, Shane is loving it. It provides a much-needed break from the stress and upsets in his life at the moment.

Who knows, maybe he'll bump into someone new here, and this time he _won't_  forget to trade names!

The decision to fly to New Orleans had been spontaneous, pretty much. Shane's always been one for spontaneity. He knew he'd needed a vacation - too much was happening all at once for him to be truly comfortable.

New Orleans itself, however, was a surprise. He didn't want to leave the country - not a tropical vacation or overseas getaway. 

He'd considered Maine - he loves it there, the nature and peacefulness and scenic views.

He'd considered Illinois, his home state.

He'd considered Florida and New York and even North Dakota, but ultimately, something inside him told him that Louisiana was the way to go.

So now here he is, along the thriving, easygoing lifestyle of New Orleans in the city's oldest neighbourhood - the French Quarter.

And boy, is it a sight.

Shane loves the atmosphere of New Orleans. It's simultaneously different and similar to the atmosphere of Maine. It's calming and you feel like you're a part of something. In Maine, it was quiet and solitude and nature. Here in New Orleans, it's the teeming throng of people, the music, and the night-life.

Shane texts his friends a little update as to where he is - Sara and Jen and Steven had _not_  been thrilled when he'd announced his surprise vacation.

"You're leaving?" Jen had asked accusingly. "Why?"

Sara wouldn't look at him - probably thinking he was running away from her.

"I just need to get away," Shane had mumbled, shaking his head. A part of him had hoped they'd understand.

"We can't stop him from doing anything, I mean, what's the harm in him going on a trip?" Steven had reasoned, and it was dropped from then on.

Shane's a few blocks away from his hotel now, and the early afternoon sun is bright and getting hot. He hopes to be a tourist for the day and explore all the cool must-see places, but night time is strictly dedicated to partying.

As Shane passes the streets and the people, his mind inevitably wanders back towards the place he'd been trying to escape - his Mystery Man.

The source of his frustrations for the past week, and overall only problem in his life.

Shane huffs, side-stepping a woman in a hurry to avoid a collision. He's supposed to be on vacation, taking his mind off things and enjoying himself, yet here he is, almost causing injuries by dwelling on the one thing he'd wanted to forget.

Shane scans the passing faces, but it's hopeless. Hundreds of thousands of people live in the Big Easy, he isn't going to just fucking _find_ that guy here. That isn't how life works.

Life, or the universe, or whatever fucking higher power, has just been playing one huge joke on Shane Madej lately, and quite frankly, he's sick of it. First Sara, now Mystery Man, and with his luck, he'll meet _another_  person here and they won't be able to maintain a long-distance relationship.

This fucking _sucks_. Why does Shane fall so hard and so easily? This shit isn't fair.

Shane kicks a pebble and watches it bounce along down the sidewalk before coming to a wobbly halt, sitting comfortably in a little indent in the path.

He thinks about that for a bit. Maybe he's just a lone pebble on a sidewalk, the sidewalk that is _life_ , and all he needs is for someone to kick him so he can move forward and land into a more favourable location.

He really needs to get out of his head, but. Well, whatever that kick is, he's waiting for it.

Maybe life is a series of kicks and rests. Shane's just a fucking pebble on the Life Sidewalk, and everything that's happened to him has been a kick.

Graduating high school and starting college: kick - rest comfortably in one spot for a while.

Graduating college and finding a job: kick - rest for a while.

Dating Sara: kick - rest for a bit.

Breaking up with Sara: kick backwards - uncomfortable rest. His pebble has stopped, but it's wobbly and could teeter at any moment.

Finding Mystery Man: huge kick, but the absolute worst resting spot. He's waiting, and waiting, because this resting spot is not ideal for a pebble, it's rough and uncomfortable and he _needs_  to be kicked towards a better spot or he's gonna erode and ultimately die.

Yeah - Shane _really_  needs to get out of his head.

He continues walking, no destination in mind, but just ... walking.

He finds another pebble on the ground.

He kicks it.

Shane isn't sure what leads him to head to Bourbon Street later on that night. There's just something going on - always something going on in this city, especially the bustling Bourbon Street - and he's, well, intrigued. And it seems wild enough for him to forget his worries, so, what's the harm?

Shane passes the Dauphine Orleans on his way towards Bourbon Street, which is a block away from the infamous hotel. He's heard stories about it - how it's haunted and people hear things in their rooms. He doesn't know the whole history, nor does he particularly care, but. It's interesting, that he's standing in front of a supposedly-haunted hotel.

He looks up at it in contemplation. It doesn't _look_  very haunted, and even if it were, it isn't the type of place that Shane would avoid in fear, or whatever. It's just a regular hotel.

The bright sign with the hotel's name on it glares down at Shane and he settles for looking at the entrance instead. Surely it wouldn't hurt to go inside?

But, no. What's the point? He already has a hotel, and ghosts aren't real. What's he gonna do, waltz in there and demand the spirits show themselves?

God, Shane needs to get out of here. Imaginary ghosts are doing weird things to his head.

As he heads towards Bourbon Street, he can't seem to shake the feeling that he forgot something back at the Dauphine Orleans hotel. He checks his pockets for his phone and wallet and other essentials, and yup, they're all present and accounted for. So why is there a nagging feeling in his gut that he left something there?

With a shake of his head, he puts it out of his mind. It's probably just a leftover urge to taunt the ghosts. Shane's nothing if not a little shit, and who would he be if he passed up an opportunity to provoke some spirits? He'd die first in a horror movie, but in reality he'd be the one to survive because, well, demons aren't real.

He shakes his head a little, smiling a bit to himself. When it comes to skepticism, he's as _pure_  as they come. All he needs is an inherent believer to crush the dreams of. None of his pals are against him in his beliefs; it'd be fun to have someone to argue with over this stuff.

Loud music makes its way to Shane's ears and he glances up, grinning at the huge street party going on. There's lights and music and people dancing and it's exactly the kind of thing that Shane needs in order to let go.

He scans the faces for any particular people he can waste the night with and tries to convince himself that he isn't looking for his Mystery Man.

An hour and way too many drinks later and Shane finds himself wearing three beaded necklaces and the first few buttons of his shirt are undone. _Whoops._  He's met some new friends, Zach and Keith, that he's tagged along with for the night, and they're on some balcony of some pub shouting the words to "Jump In The Line." 

" _Shake, shake, shake, señora_ ," Shane bellows at the top of his lungs, throwing one of his beaded necklaces into the teeming throng of people below, and he and Zach and Keith do some weird cha-cha at the three beats that follow in the song. It's dark and they're laughing too hard, but Shane hasn't had this much fun in a long time. 

"The night's still young, boys!" Keith shouts, punching his fist into the air. "Let's head downstairs and see what else it has in store."

Shane likes Keith. He's loud and brash but funny and a swell kind of guy. He's exactly the type of person Shane enjoys partying with.

Shane likes Zach, too; he's shorter and sweet and fun to be around, and an a _bsolute lightweight_. He reminds Shane way too much of Steven, which is sort of a big factor of why Shane's warmed up to him so quickly.

Zach nods fervently, already drunk as hell, and tugs on Shane's arm to lead him as they follow Keith out of the bar. 

Their particular area of Bourbon Street is _wild_ , with a crowd of people all gathered out on the road to have a good time. Shane feels a sort of kinship with everyone, for some reason; they're all out here just to get out of their heads for a night.

Shane immediately loses Zach and Keith as they step into more-crowded territory. It doesn't matter so much - they've all traded numbers already and he can call them if he really needs them - but it _does_  mean that Shane's gonna be alone for the next who-knows-how-long.

He stumbles a little, pushing through some people to find a different bar to stay at, eyes squinting to see if he can catch the tail ends of either Zach or Keith.

A few dancing people bump into him as he walks, but he doesn't pay any attention until someone backs into his chest.

This new person is holding a camera, appearing to be filming everything, and his back is turned to Shane.

Well, technically, his back is still against Shane's chest.

"Oh, sorry," the shorter man says, and _Shane can't breathe_.

He _knows_  that voice, that voice that's been plaguing his thoughts every goddamn day. It's the voice that Shane's been clinging onto for the past _week_ , desperately trying to store it in his memory for as long as possible.

"It's you," Shane chokes out, stunned. He might be drunk, he might be hallucinating out of stress, this might be some big delusion or what have you; granted, he hasn't even _seen_  his face yet, but - 

But he _knows_.

The shorter man turns around.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> lmao

Time stops.

 

Well, it doesn't really, but _god_  does it feel like it to Shane. To Shane, the world has stopped spinning and everyone is frozen and nothing else matters but _him_ , the man right in front of him staring up at him in slight wonderment. They're both just standing and looking and Shane feels bodies brushing past him but nobody else _exists_. Not here, not now, only _them_.

"Pebble-Shane has been kicked," he murmurs, staring down in awe at the man before him.

The shorter man - _Mystery Man, it's really him_  - blinks in confusion.

"Pebble-Shane?" he parrots, and Shane shakes his head, grinning.

"Nothing, never mind."

"Well, for what it's worth," Mystery Man says, "hey, it's you, too."

"You remember me?" Shane asks in surprise, and he's suddenly conscious of his unkempt hair, his unbuttoned shirt, and the beaded necklaces adorning his neck.

Mystery Man grins, and Shane feels like the past week of agonizing waiting melts away and is replaced by the sunny glow of this man's smile.

"Do you have a mini-golf trophy to show me?" Mystery Man asks with the same sparkle in his eye as that day at the water park, and Shane's heart sighs.

"Unfortunately, no," he says, but he's laughing a little as he runs a hand through his hair.

"This is gonna sound weird, but, I'm actually kinda ... pleasantly surprised to see you," Sunshine Man says, laughing nervously.

"Are you really?" Shane asks, mouth quirking in surprise. This whole situation is extremely unexpected. Shane's still drunk, he could very well just he hallucinating.

"Yeah, I ... I kinda wanted to see you again, after that day at the water park," Sunshine Man admits. "I never thought I would, though. You were just ... really funny and great to be around, and it was a shame we didn't get to talk more."

Shane sobers up.

He _can't breathe_.

_Again_.

"That's crazy -" he begins, but the shorter man cuts him off.

"- Sorry, I know that's such a weird thing to say, we've only met once and like you probably haven't even thought about me since that day -"

And _oh_ , Sunshine Man couldn't be more _wrong_.

"I've thought about you every day since we first met," Shane admits quietly, and the shorter man's eyes widen, a flicker of _something_  in them.

He shuts off the camera in his hand, stuffing it into a bag at his side.

"Do - Do you wanna, get out of here?" he asks, eyes hopeful.

Shane takes his hand.

"Lead the way."

They push past the crowd of people, Shane gripping Sunshine Man's hand tight so they won't become separated again. Like hell Shane's gonna lose him one more time.

Shane sends a hasty, one-handed text to Keith - "found an old friend, don't worry about me, see you guys around" - before stepping off to a side-street where Sunshine Man is leading him.

"Are you drunk?"

"Kind of, yeah," Sunshine Man chirps, turning to grin at Shane over his shoulder, "but with the way you're stumbling, not as drunk as you."

Shane elects to ignore that comment. He's already somewhat sobered up now, he just happens to be a naturally stumble-y guy, especially if he's being eagerly pulled along somewhere.

"Where are we going?" he asks instead, and looks around to notice that there isn't a crowd of people around them anymore - they're more-or-less alone.

Yet they're still holding hands.

"To my hotel, it's just a block away," the man replies nonchalantly, hand tightening briefly on Shane's.

Shane tries not to think about the implications of that; they've only just met again, after all, and Sunshine Man doesn't seem like that type of person.

They walk in comfortable silence, the distant sound of Bourbon Street's night-life almost like white noise. The air is somewhat cool and the sky is dark and everything's pretty aesthetic, if you ask Shane. Like the romantic stroll scene in _Lady and the Tramp_ , except with more zooming cars and distant club music rather than the occasional carriage, wet cement, and _Bella Notte_ crooning in the background.

Shane wants to speak, but doesn't know what to say. What _can_  he say?  _"I've waited forever for you"?_ Not fucking likely.

"Hey, here we are," Sunshine Man says, stopping in front of a building. "The Dauphine Orleans."

Shane blanches.

"You're - you're staying _here?"_ he asks incredulously. Holy _shit_.

"Yeah, why?" the other man asks bemusedly. "Are you worried that it's haunted?"

Shane huffs out a laugh.

"No, god no, I don't believe in that stuff." He notices the shorter man's eyes spark, but plows on before he can interject. "It's just, I was walking around the area earlier today and I passed this hotel, and ... Something told me to go inside, but I ignored it, and as I walked away I ..." Shane breaks off, laughing nervously. It's so _stupid_  when he says it out loud.

"You what?"

"I just ... I felt like I forgot something, like I _needed_  to go back."

The other man beams up at Shane, and gosh, it's _radiant_. This guy, this beautiful man before him, is fucking _ethereal_.

If Shane wasn't sober before, he is now.

"Come on," Sunshine Man says, grinning, and tugs on Shane's hand to lead him inside.

"This place doesn't look haunted," Shane observes, glancing around as they head towards Sunshine Man's hotel room - 101. "This looks like a luxury hotel."

"What, did you expect it to be decrepit? Falling apart? Or maybe like the Haunted Mansion?" the man snorts, shooting Shane a look. "Not all haunted places _look_  creepy."

"But all creepy places _are_  haunted, right?" Shane finishes for him, smirking. "You know ... Ghosts aren't real."

The shorter man lets go of Shane's hand (a fact that he mourns greatly) to open his room, shaking his head as he lets them both inside.

"Ghosts are absolutely real. It's why I'm even here in the first place."

Shane steps into the main area, glancing around. It looks like a regular hotel room, except it has a jacuzzi tub in the bathroom and there's some weird equipment on the bed.

"Sorry?" 

He turns to face the other man who's smiling up at Shane. Sunshine Man brushes past him to grab a remote-control-like object from the bed.

"This is an EMF detector," he says, holding it like it's his pride and joy, beaming. "All that other stuff on my bed are just my other camera, audio equipment, motion-sensitive lights, spirit box, the works."

Shane stares blankly at the heap of wires and shit that's lying on the bed, then looks at the still-beaming face of the other man. He feels a little sick. But he also feels like laughing. He has no clue what to do.

"You're a ghost hunter?" he asks, and his voice is a little strained.

The other man's eyes furrow in confusion.

"Yeah? Wait ... Oh, you don't recognize me?"

And, wait -  _what?_

" _Recognize you?"_  Shane parrots, eyes wide.

"Fuck, _shit_ , I ... I never introduced myself, did I?"

Shane laughs at the understatement.

"To be fair, I didn't either. So, uh, I'm Shane Madej."

"Well better late than never," the shorter man says, then holds out a hand, grinning. "I'm Ryan. Ryan Bergara. Nice to finally, properly meet you."

And _oh_.

_Oh, god_.

 

"You're telling me you've almost ran into me _three times?"_

"You're telling me that you're _the_  Ryan Bergara, 'ghost hunter extraordinaire'?"

"I've _already told you_  -"

"Yeah, and so have I!"

Ryan pinches the bridge of his nose, shaking his head.

"Then stop asking!"

"No, you!"

"Are you angry at me?" Ryan asks finally, stopping in his tracks.

They've both been pacing for the past fifteen minutes, ever since Ryan introduced himself and Shane felt his mind explode.

"No fucking way," Shane had murmured, eyes wide, and after Ryan's inquisitive glance he'd spilled the whole story, starting from after their chance encounter. It was really all downhill from there.

Shane stops too, looking at Ryan in shock.

"What? No, Ryan, of course I'm not mad at you. I just ..." He shakes his head, laughing to himself. "I can't believe I _actually_  want to date a guy who hunts ghosts for a living."

Ryan blinks in surprise, taking a step back.

"Wait, really?"

Shane immediately ducks his head, avoiding Ryan's incredulous stare.

"I ... Yeah, I .... I've looked everywhere for you, and I really don't want to let you go just yet."

Ryan's in front of him in an instant, staring up at him with stars in his eyes.

"Even though I'm a ghost hunter?" he asks teasingly, but there's a hint of a downturn of his lips.

Shane aches to kiss it off.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but yes, even though you hunt for imaginary things."

Ryan reaches up and flicks the tip of Shane's nose fondly.

"They're not imaginary. I got some cold, hard proof last night, actually. Footsteps coming from the floor above for hours on end, but when I knocked this morning, nobody was there. So I checked the front desk and it turns out, _nobody_ had stayed in the room above mine last night."

"People walk, Ryan," Shane teases, mouth inches away from the other man's.

_Ryan, Ryan, Ryan_. How amazing it is to feel that name on his tongue, to finally be able to see Ryan and think his actual  _name_ rather than 'Mystery Man' or 'Sunshine Man' or, 'Jesus Christ, who the fuck _are_  you?'

"This was different, Shane." And oh, how amazing it is to hear Ryan say Shane's name, too. "I have audio proof, these weren't normal footsteps."

"Sometimes floors are just creaky."

"This was _different_ , Shane."

"It's really not. I think you just heard some creaky floors and your little, easily-impressed mind jumped to the wrong concl -"

Shane can't finish because Ryan Ghost-Hunter Bergara has pulled him in by the front of his shirt and is currently kissing him with everything he has. One of Ryan's hands is on Shane's waist, the other fisted in Shane's shirt, and Shane instinctively wraps both arms around Ryan, holding him close.

Shane's world is spinning and everything feels right. This, having Ryan here, _with him_ , is that's what he's been aching for for _ages_. His heart has longed for this moment and _god_ , he feels so fucking happy.

"Wow," Shane whispers once they pull away, eyes as starry as Ryan's, no doubt. His arms don't unwrap from around Ryan. "Wouldn't have guessed that skeptic vs believer debates turn you on."

"Shut up, Shane."

"No, I'm glad, because we're gonna be having a lot of those."

"Don't make me kiss you again."

"Oh, yes, quite the threat, Bergara. I'm shaking in my sneakers."

"Your sad excuse for sneakers."

"Not everyone is into Jordans, little ghostie."

"Don't call me that."

"Speaking of. Any visual proof?" Shane asks, one brow raised in challenge.

Ryan looks away.

"Of ghosts? No. But it isn't for lack of trying! I have a GoPro Hero 4 Silver  _and_  two other cameras, for good measure."

"The GoPro as in, this?" Shane asks, tapping the little camera strapped to Ryan's chest.

Ryan glances down in surprise.

"Oh, shit, it's still filming."

"Wait, what?"

"Yeah I -" Ryan fidgets with the little camera, presumably stopping the recording. "- I was filming tonight for my vlog. I'm uh, I'm a YouTuber and I don't always post ghost hunting videos. I do vlogs, too. And I figured my fans would _love_  to see me partying it up on Bourbon Street so I was filming the action on my GoPro and the more, uh, aesthetic-type shots, if you will, on my other camera."

"So you're saying this camera just documented our entire meet-cute."

Ryan blinks incredulously.

"Yeah, I - I suppose it did. Along with my other camera that's in my bag - I was filming on it when we bumped into each other."

Shane smiles beatifically at Ryan.

"Thank god. We'll be the first couple ever to have actual footage of our first meeting to display at our wedding."

Ryan laughs and it's a wonderful sound, music to Shane's ears, just like the first time.

"Don't get ahead of yourself, big guy," Ryan chastises, but he's grinning too wide for Shane to take him seriously. "Let me take you out first."

"How about we watch that footage, first?"

"What, so I can see myself act like an idiot around you? No thanks."

"I'll help you edit it, that's kind of my thing. Don't tell me you aren't gonna post this. After all," Shane teases, grinning, "it _is_  part of the vlog."

Ryan rolls his eyes before whirling around to sit on the edge of the bed, reaching over to grab his laptop on a table.

He takes off the GoPro, clears his equipment to make room on the bed, and pats the spot beside him.

"Alright, well, let's do this, then," he sighs in mock-suffering, but his beatific smile tells Shane otherwise.

Shane sits beside him, wrapping an arm around Ryan's waist, and Ryan rests his head on Shane's shoulder.

They _fit_.

Ryan swipes on the camera's tiny touch-screen to access playback mode.

"Ready?" he asks, face oh-so close to Shane's.

Shane leans forward and kisses Ryan, just because he can, and nods.

"Ready."

Ryan presses play.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to research how GoPros worked and I'm glad I did bc apparently only one type of GoPro can actually playback video on the camera itself?? wild


End file.
